Currywurst with the Thermomix® is ready in 30 minutes and differs from the takeaway version in two ways: the sauce is cooked with red pepper (for sweetness and fruitiness) and tinned chopped tomatoes (for depth), not just poured from a ketchup bucket. And the sausages go briefly into the oven at the end so the sauce can soak in.
We have been making Currywurst for years as a straightforward family classic. The sauce comes together in under 15 minutes of active time, and the oven does the rest. Mashed potatoes, chips or a quick slice of farmhouse bread all work perfectly alongside.
Currywurst with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 12 ✓
- 1 onion
- 1 red pepper
- 20 g rapeseed oil
- 2 tsp curry powder
- 1 tsp hot smoked paprika
- 50 g tomato puree
- 1 tsp vegetable stock powder
- 200 g ketchup
- 200 g tinned chopped tomatoes
- 10 g Worcestershire sauce
- 4 smoked pork sausages
- 1 tbsp oil for frying
Instructions 0 / 6
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1
Onions.
Peel the onion, halve it and place in the mixing bowl. Wash the pepper, halve it, remove the seeds and stalk, cut into pieces, add to the bowl, chop for 4 sec / speed 5 and push down with the spatula.
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2
Sweat.
Add the oil, spices and tomato puree and cook for 3 min / Varoma / speed 1.
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3
Sauce.
Add the remaining ingredients, except the sausages, cook for 10 min / Varoma / speed 1 and blend, gradually increasing to speed 8.
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4
Sausages.
Meanwhile, heat a frying pan with a little oil and sear the smoked pork sausages on all sides until browned. Preheat the oven to 200°C top and bottom heat.
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5
Bake.
Slice the sausages and place them in a baking dish.
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6
Serve.
Season the sauce to taste, adjust if needed, pour over the sausages and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 15 minutes. Serve and sprinkle with a little curry powder.
Tip: Serve crispy chips, fresh baguette or rice alongside your Currywurst.
Video
Nutrition per serving
The sauce: pepper and tomatoes make the difference
Standard Currywurst sauce recipes use ketchup alone as the base. That tastes like a budget version. We use 200 g ketchup and 200 g tinned chopped tomatoes in a 1:1 ratio, plus a whole red pepper that is chopped and cooked in. The pepper brings natural sweetness, the tomatoes bring depth, and the ketchup gives the typical Currywurst consistency.
Tomato puree (50 g) is cooked with the onions and curry powder for three minutes at Varoma on speed 1. This frying step is not optional. It removes the raw acidity from the tomato puree and releases the essential oils in the curry powder. Without it, the sauce tastes flat.
2 tsp curry powder plus 1 tsp hot smoked paprika
The spice base is 2 tsp mild curry powder and 1 tsp hot smoked paprika. For more heat, increase to 3 tsp curry or add 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper. Worcestershire sauce (10 g) is the secret umami booster that rounds the sauce out. Without Worcester it tastes like ketchup with curry, with Worcester it tastes like a proper street-food stall.
Not all curry powders are the same. Indian curry powder often contains more cumin and coriander, while German curry powder tends to have more turmeric and fenugreek. For Currywurst we use the German style, which gives the classic flavour. Indian blends can taste a little too exotic in a Currywurst sauce.
Smoked pork sausage instead of bratwurst: why
The classic Berlin Currywurst uses a coarse bratwurst without casing. We use 4 smoked pork sausages (around 100 g each) because they are less fatty, hold together better when sliced, and fry more evenly. Bratwurst works too, but tends to fall apart more easily when cut.
For the original Berlin Currywurst: use a poached bratwurst without casing, grill or roast it in the oven, then slice. With smoked pork sausages it is quicker, as the lower fat content causes fewer problems in the pan.
Pan plus oven: two-stage cooking
The sausages are seared in a frying pan with a little oil all over until they have colour. This is the more important of the two cooking stages because it triggers the Maillard reaction, which creates the characteristic roasted aromas (food science reference, 2024).
Then slice them, place in a baking dish, pour the sauce over, and bake for 15 minutes at 200°C top and bottom heat. In the oven the sauce soaks into the sausage, and the glazed effect on the surface develops. Anyone who only uses the pan ends up with dry sausage and sauce sitting separately alongside.
The best Currywurst sauce: adjusting it to your taste
For even more depth: 30 g brown sugar instead of vegetable stock powder gives a caramelised note. 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar (added at the end) gives a sharp acidity like a Westphalian street-food stall. 1 tsp smoked paprika for a smoky note like food from the grill.
For something really hearty: add 1 tbsp soy sauce. It sounds unusual in a Currywurst, but it gives a powerful umami kick. We do this occasionally when the sauce is the main focus (for example in Currywurst bowls rather than as a side).
Three alternative sauce styles: mango, Berlin or Zanzibar
Mango version (fruity): Cook 100 g mango pieces (fresh or frozen) together with the pepper and tomatoes. Add 1 cm of finely chopped ginger in step 1. This gives an Indian-Asian note that pairs beautifully with a mild curry. Great for families with children who do not enjoy the classic acidity.
Berlin style (with gherkins): Cook 50 g finely chopped pickled gherkins in the sauce, plus an extra 20 g apple cider vinegar. This is the typical Berlin street-food style with a clear sour note. Reduce the tomato puree to 30 g and season with just a pinch of salt.
Zanzibar style: Add 1 tsp curry paste (red or yellow) alongside the curry powder, plus 30 g Worcestershire sauce instead of 10 g. Caribbean sweetness meets Asian heat. Works particularly well with coarse bratwurst without casing.
Pan or oven: why both matter
Most Thermomix® Currywurst recipes skip the oven step. The sausage goes only into the pan, then the sauce is poured over. That results in a sausage with sauce on the side, not one that has absorbed the sauce. The 15 minutes in the oven at 200°C make all the difference: the sauce thickens slightly and settles like a glaze over the sausage. That is the classic street-food look you get at a proper chip shop.
If you only want to use the pan (for example due to time): simmer the sauce with the warm sausage in a non-stick pan for 3 minutes. This shortens the street-food experience but is faster. The oven gives a more professional result.
The right side dish: chips, bread or mash
Chips are the classic choice. In the oven, frozen chips work alongside the sausages at the same time: same oven setting, 200°C, 20 minutes. Perfect for anyone without a deep-fat fryer.
Homemade mashed potatoes with the Thermomix® is the hearty option for larger families. Bread options: Ciabatta, pizza rolls or jacket potatoes from the Varoma all work well.
Make the sauce ahead, cook the sausages just before eating
The Currywurst sauce keeps in the fridge for 4 days in a sealed jar. We often make it the evening before and only need to fry the sausages and put them in the oven the next day. The sauce without sausages can also be frozen in portions: keeps for up to 3 months.
If you want to store the whole dish: not ideal. The sausage slices become tough after reheating a second time, and the sauce separates. Better to reheat the sauce separately and fry fresh sausage slices.
If you are looking for a serving platter, a cutlery set, suitable soup plates, a tin opener for the chopped tomatoes or a good spice set for the sauce: here are our recommendations.
Goes well with: bread rolls and potato salad.
